Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two razor-sharp streaks of icy sword qi slashed through the air.
Puchi!
Both men's shoulders were pierced instantly, forcing them back in disarray.
From the wounds, a biting chill spread rapidly, threatening to freeze them solid.
Their faces turned pale with fright, and they hastily circulated their spiritual power to suppress it. Only after straining with all their might did they barely force the cold back down.
When they raised their eyes again to look at Wang Yuyao, they were already filled with fear.
"Wang Yuyao, you dare strike at your own sect-mates? Aren't you afraid of being punished under sect law?"
Wang Yuyao said nothing. Spiritual light gathered once more at her fingertip, ready to direct the flawless Cloud-Water Cold Light Sword before her.
"Wait."
A hand suddenly caught her wrist.
She turned, meeting Wang Jianqiang's calm gaze.
He shook his head lightly. "Not worth it to throw away your life over these two."
The Hehuan Sect strictly forbade disciples from killing one another. With so many eyes watching here, if Wang Yuyao really struck them down, it would never stay hidden.
And under sect law, killing one's fellow disciple demanded a life in return.
"Yes, yes, Waste—no, Wang Jianqiang is right," the two men stammered, seizing on his words like a lifeline. "You're a top-ten talent in the outer sect, we're just eighteenth and twentieth. Hardly worth risking your life over."
Wang Yuyao ignored them, simply nodding to Wang Jianqiang. "I'll listen to you."
Hearing this, the two thought they had her cornered with sect law. Their eyes brightened.
They exchanged a glance, then said, "Wang Yuyao, by attacking us you've already violated sect rules. Once we report this, you'll be harshly punished."
"However, we can overlook what just happened—if you help us seize the meditation mat on this platform."
To hear them brazenly threaten her in turn made Wang Yuyao's face frost over.
Wang Jianqiang patted her shoulder lightly, motioning her to stay calm. He looked at the pair with a faint smile. "So what you mean is… you want us to cooperate with you?"
"Cooperate?" They sneered. "Didn't you hear us clearly? She's to win the mat for us."
"Times have changed. We're not interested in teaming up. You don't even have the qualifications to speak of cooperation."
They turned back to Wang Yuyao, their tone commanding. "If you don't want punishment from the sect, you'd best behave."
Anger flickered across Wang Yuyao's face.
But Wang Jianqiang's smile didn't fade. "I was already willing to spare you. Why press so hard?"
"Heh, Waste Wang, don't try to sound noble." The pair snorted coldly. "Kill us? Do you even dare?"
Wang Jianqiang sighed. "Since you insist on forcing my hand, I'll have to cut you down. Otherwise, people might think I let others walk all over me."
Though his words were soft, the two men's hearts clenched tight. They quickly stared at Wang Yuyao. "Think carefully! Is it worth throwing your life away… for him?"
Wang Yuyao didn't hesitate. Light flared at her fingertip again, ready to end them.
Once more, Wang Jianqiang caught her hand.
She frowned in puzzlement.
"They do have to die," he said softly, "but not by your hand."
She fell silent, faintly understanding.
Then Wang Jianqiang's gaze shifted to the two men, his voice still gentle but edged with steel. "Sect rules may bind Hehuan disciples. But I wonder… can they bind people of other sects?"
The two froze, not grasping his meaning.
His smile faded, voice chilling. "Xue'er, still not moving?"
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two streaks of inconspicuous spiritual force shot forth.
Before the pair even registered what happened, beams pierced their brows, snuffing out their lives.
Across the platform, the four cultivators from Wan Jian Sect and Zhengyang Sect stiffened in alarm. Seeing the Hehuan Sect duo slaughtered outright, they turned to flee.
"Since you've witnessed it," Wang Jianqiang said mildly, "none of you are leaving."
Four streaks of condensed spiritual power lanced out in an instant, punching clean through their skulls.
They fell lifeless to the ground.
Watching Ye Qingxue dispatch six foes like chickens and dogs without even showing herself, Wang Jianqiang couldn't help but marvel at the might of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
The gap between late Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment was only a single step, but the difference was like heaven and earth.
In front of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, even peak Qi Refining—third-turn perfection—was fragile as paper.
He turned to Wang Yuyao. "Yuyao, fetch the mat."
She nodded and flew up.
Moments later, the meditation mat was secured.
Wang Jianqiang's eyes moved toward another platform where a mat still remained.
Keep taking them.
Four figures battled fiercely there—two from Xuanqing Palace, one from Wan Jian Sect, and one from Hehuan Sect.
"Waste Wang!"
"And Ye Qingxue!"
The Hehuan disciple's face twitched upon spotting them.
The Wan Jian Sect cultivator's expression flickered but he stayed silent.
The two from Xuanqing Palace, however, barked sharply: "Get lost! This mat is ours!"
They completely ignored Wang Jianqiang.
So old, reeking of decay, clearly a washed-up failure with his lifespan nearly gone.
But they did cast wary looks at Wang Yuyao.
As for Ye Qingxue, cloaked in concealment, none could sense her presence.
Wang Jianqiang's gaze swept the four, finally resting on the Xuanqing pair. "Then allow me to return your words."
"Scram. This mat belongs to me."
Killing intent flashed across their faces.
They had been holding the upper hand in this fight, the mat nearly theirs.
Now Wang Jianqiang arrived to disrupt things, and his arrogance lit their fury.
"Courting death!"
With a cold snort, they sent their swords flying at Wang Jianqiang and Wang Yuyao.
He only looked calmly at Wang Yuyao.
She readied to strike—
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two beams of spiritual force streaked out, piercing the Xuanqing disciples' skulls in a blink.
Wang Jianqiang blinked, glancing back. "Your Xuanqing Palace permits disciples to kill each other?"
A voice whispered in his mind—Ye Qingxue's.
"No."
"Then why kill them?"
"I've checked already. No other Foundation cultivators are on this plaza. No one can prove it was me."
Wang Jianqiang's eyes lit up.
No other Foundation Establishment?
That meant… they were invincible here.
His gaze roved across the dozens of figures still battling on the square.
"Should we go big?"
Ye Qingxue paused. "…How big?"
He grinned. "Wipe them all out."
Ye Qingxue: …